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THE EFFECTIVENESS OF TREE PRESERVATION ORDERS IN SCOTLAND
CHAPTER TWO: THE FACTORS INFLUENCING RECENT TREE PRESERVATION ORDER WORK
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
2.1 The driving force behind most TPOs springs from a council needing to respond rapidly to development pressure within a high amenity, treed area. Although this pattern has existed for 50+ years across Scotland, it has accelerated markedly in the last 3 decades in response to widely differing circumstances. In Edinburgh, the major housing extensions into the green belt in the 1970's led to a maximum of 30 TPOs being created every year. Currently, there are only 2 to 4 Orders per annum as the political priority switches to the use of brownfield sites. This modest TPO programme in the capital city has to be viewed within the context of the council receiving some 5,000+ planning applications a year, roughly half of which contain trees of amenity value. Of these 2,000 sites, about 100 include trees that might justify a TPO (rather than the imposition of planning conditions should a consent be granted). In narrowing the 100 applications down to the 2 to 4 that progress to the formal TPO stage, the factors considered include a rigorous interpretation of the section 160 of the Act ("in the interests of amenity"), together with the health and the position of the trees, the type of development proposed and the land use framework in the local plan. In addition, the council has to be confident that the TPO would be supported at an inquiry if an unsuccessful application is challenged via the appeal procedures.
2.2 In Aberdeen, the greatest pressure to extend the urban area has occurred in the last decade. This position has led the council to promote up to 12 TPOs in each of the last 9 years (94 in total). On this basis, the majority of the 173 confirmed TPOs are of comparatively recent origin and reflect contemporary circumstances. Similar patterns prevail in both Dundee and the Scottish Borders where housing pressure has risen markedly in recent years. A summary of all the above statistics for the 8 councils interviewed is contained in
Appendix 3 at the rear of this report.
2.3 As there is an almost complete lack of revocations, the Scottish-wide trend is for the numbers of TPOs being administered by councils to rise steadily every year. This pattern (which is likely to rise markedly in the foreseeable future) generates a considerable management and staffing commitment for councils.
2.4 Other factors that indicate that the work generated by TPOs will require greater input by councils are the rising numbers of applications to carry out work to protected trees; more enquiries from owners seeking advice on best practice; a recognition by many owners that trees need to be maintained to safeguard their long term amenity; the greater influence of local pressure groups; the larger numbers of trees that are being planted in conservation areas; and an enhanced political awareness that amenity issues (such as TPOs) are important factors in securing electoral support. These trends mirror the world-wide increase in interest in all environmental issues following the Earth Summit at Rio in 1992 and the imminent follow up in Johannesburg this summer (the beginning of August).
2.5 The consultations have shown clearly that there are a number of important improvements to the current system that can be introduced in both the short and the longer term. These factors (which apply to government, councils, owners and other interested parties) are best addressed by posing the 11 questions outlined in
chapter 3.
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